Standing Stone and Burial Chambers in Pembrokeshire

Pembrokeshire has a rich history, not just going back hundreds of years, but thousands. Cromlechs (burial chambers) are the earliest signs of settlement and our county has more for its size than any other county in Britain.

Whilst Stone Henge, the most famous standing stones may not be in Pembrokeshire or even Wales, some of its stones come from Pembrokeshire's Preseli Hills.

Pembrokeshire has many of its own standing stones, scattered around the county as well as burial chambers and other prehistoric archaeology.
Here in Pembrokeshire, there is archaeological evidence spanning the Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age) to the Iron Age, and every period in between.

The standing stone and burial mounds originate from the Bronze age and are usually located in more visible locations such as upland slopes and summits. However, the scatterings of flint and stone tools and burial chambers of the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) and Neolithic (New Stone Age) tend to be on lowland, often coastal locations.

There are several burial chambers to visit locally including:

Carreg Samson : a 5000 year old Neolithic burial chamber. 3 stones remain holding the massive capstone upright. It is thought that it would have been covered in earth, so it is one of Britain’s few surviving portal tombs. It is located near the village of Abercastle, a short drive from Fishguard.

Pentre Ifan: Dates back to 3500BC. 3 upright stone hold up the huge, 16 tonne capstone. It is one of the best examples in Wales and thought to be the burial place of a very important person.

Carreg Coetan Arthur Burial Chamber:
This is on the outskirts of Newport behind a housing development
This Neolithic burial chamber has 1 metre high uprights and a 2 metre wide capstone.

Dyffryn Syfynwy (Henry's Moat): Near Tufton, this is a cairn surrounded by 18 stones from 3 to 7 feet in height.

Cerig Y Gof : A Bronze Age Burial Chamber. Located between Fishguard and Newport village, these are five rectangular stone cist tombs, once covered by a round mound.

Garn Turne: A Neolithic Burial Chamber.
Located near Wolfscastle, grounded capstone supported by three fallen uprights; original earth mound is gone; avenue of large upright stones, oriented to midsummer sunrise, leads up to the burial chamber.

Troed y Rhiw:
Near Tafarn-y-bwich and the Waun Mawn circle; two standing stones with a lone stone nearby.

Waun Maun:
Near Tafarn-y-bwich, this was originally a 150 foot in diameter circle, but only four stones remain, two of which have fallen.Gors Fawr: Standing Stones and Circle.
Near Efailwen this stone circle is 70 feet in diameter and contains 16 low stones; 2 stones nearby aligned on north-west—south-west axis; nearby is the bluestone quarry used in the construction of Stonehenge

Parc Y Meirw: Bronze Age Stone Row, near the main Fishguard to Newport road. These are seven stones of an original eight now set into a field wall, thought to have been used for predicting astronomical events.